Memories of You
by castone
Summary: The ones closest to John Shepard come to English Bay to remember him.


(A/N: So, yeah, listening to the Persona 3 soundtrack early in the morning is not a good idea, especially when you're throwing around ideas in your head.)

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English Bay had always been their favorite spot in Vancouver. The gentle breeze coming off the ocean, rich with the smell of saltwater, felt good against the skin. The setting sun painted the sky in vibrant shades of red, orange, and violet. It was just as he remembered it for all the years they had spent together in the city. This was the perfect spot to spread the ashes.

Standing behind him was a small group who had come to pay their final respects to John Shepard. The elaborate state service had been earlier in the week, and now it was just the ones that had mattered the most to John. They had started out as friends and companions from the war but had become a family. Many of them were now some of the most important in the galaxy, and they had put everything on hold for this evening to say their final words.

He turned to face them. "Thank you, for being here for me." His words were weak; he had been crying for days now. "If… if anyone want to say anything before…"

The first to walk up were Garrus and Tali.

"Shepard was always the crazy son-of-a-bitch." Garrus mused as he looked at Tali. "I remember from our wedding, when those Cerberus goons thought would be the perfect time to try to try to get back at us. When they were about 5 minutes out, I had just pulled out my M-97 Viper from it's case and John looked over at me and asked if that was all I brought." He broke out into a slight chuckle. "He then pulled out a Crusader, a M-37 Falcon, and his old Collector Particle Gun with the biggest grin on his face. He then said to me 'Kaidan is going to kill me for bringing all of this.' He was more concerned about what Alenko would do to him that going into a fight without armor." He held up a bottle that had been in his hand. "Here's to you, John. Guess you owe me the first round now when I finally get up there."

Tali then raised her head. Though her face was covered by her environmental suit, the sound of tears was still apparent. "Shepard was also trying to find the best in things. I remember after all that insanity, how I was so devastated after it seemed like the wedding was ruined, Shepard came up to me and hugged me and told me that all I was still going to get my wedding. I tried to say it was impossible since all the food was blown up and our clothes were torn, tattered and bloody. He just gave that stupid grin he always had on his face and told me that he had always wanted to go to a battle-themed wedding. I hit him, but then started to laugh." She broke into tears for a moment and Garrus embraced her for a few moments before she regained her composer. "Keelah se'lai, Commander John Shepard vas Normandy."

The next to walk up was Urdnot Wrex. He held a shotgun in his hands. "Getting sentimental really isn't my thing, but this shotgun, this was the first one Shepard supplied to me after I first joined the Normandy. Right after the council grounded him and we were planning our escape, I knew I didn't really need it and we needed the credits , so I ended up selling it. I didn't want to; seeing as it did get me through a lot of tough spots with Shepard, but I had a better one. Well, on our way to the Mu Relay, he walked up to me in the cargo hold and said he had something for me. The bastard had bought it back right after I had sold it and told me if I ever tried to get rid of it again, he would shoot me with it." The krogan laughed as he turned to the man holding the urn. "Well, now he can't shot me with it now, but I could never sell it if I wanted to now. I want you to have it, though. I think he wouldn't of minded that."

"You know him, he probably would say he did, but just laugh about it. Thank you, Wrex"

Wrex laughed. "Well, he can bring it up with me next time I see him then."

As Wrex walked back, Jack stepped a few steps out of the group, but really didn't get too in front of everyone. "I'm going to keep this short and sweet, everybody. All the times I told Shep to fuck off, he never did. He didn't even know me at first, but he wanted to help me. He stuck his neck out for us all, especially when he didn't have to. We're never going to see a crazy bastard who cares that much about people or aliens in this universe ever again, and we were all fuckin' lucky to know him. If there's a heaven, he's there, and hopefully when I die he can talk the gatekeeper into letting me have five more minutes with him before I get kicked down to hell."

No one saw her walking up, but now Kasumi was standing in front of them all. "I know everyone remembers their wedding; Shepard and Alenko were dancing. Well, Alenko was dancing, Shepard looked like he was having a seizure like usual." She gave a soft chuckle as she recalled the thought. "Anyways, you remember how during the dance the room turned into a planetarium? Well, I did that for him. He had been wondering how he could make the night the most memorable night for the man he loved the most, and he had mused about how he wished he could give him the universe. I just happened to over-hear it and set up a little something. When the dance was over, he went over to the corner I was cloaked in and thanked me. Shepard always had a way of knowing when we did things for him, and even though we all owe him so much, not ever once has he not thanked us for doing little things for him. I'm sure that he's thanking us now from the other side." With that, she gazed back into the sunset and faded from sight again.

The Justicar Samara walked to stand in front of the group. "I do not share as many close memories of Shepard as many of you do, but I did greatly admire him. He was a man who knew great hardships in his life. He lived by his own code; an ever-evolving code that could deal with issues my own code could not. While there were some actions of his I would have objected to, his conviction to his code was as strong as, no, stronger than my own. Now that he has passed on, I pray he has found the peace of the Goddess' embrace. "

From the group next was someone who didn't truly travel with Shepard, but was impacted just as much as the rest. Oriana Lawson looked just as her sister had in her early-50's, though she kept her hair shorter. Like many there, there was a great sadness in her eyes. "I owe John Shepard so much. Because of him, I was given 16 wonderful years with the sister that I never knew I had. When Miri…" tears started to roll down her cheeks, "…when she and Jimmy were killed in that car accident, he delivered the most touching speech at their funeral. Afterwards, he took me aside and told me that he still felt that he was in Miri's debt, and that if I ever needed anything, all I had to do was to ask him or Kaidan. I never ended up doing it, but, then he would always be checking in on me, calling just to see how I was doing. That was more than enough for me."

It was the infiltration platform of EDI who came up after Orianna. In her hands was a photo of John, Kaidan, Ashley Williams and Joker form the Normandy SR1. "Jeff told me the story behind this photograph the night before he died." She held it up so everyone could see. "Apparently, John had a feeling that Virmire was going to be a dangerous mission, one in which they could lose someone. He had insisted to the four of them take a picture to remember that they had been there since the beginning; since Eden Prime." EDI then turned the photo back around to look at it again. "John was always took the time to make sure that we would all have something to remember him, and each other, by. He did not want us to fall into sorrow if someone was lost. As Jeff was in his final hours, I had contemplated overloading my primary processors because I did not wish to live without him. John told me that Jeff would not have wanted that for me, that no of you would have wanted that for me. I tried to point out that since the Normandy had been decommissioned and Jeff was about to pass on, I had no more reason to function, in which John told me that I should make my own purpose to life, and that if I needed a starting point I should live on for the sake of everyone else. It was such a vague response, so I inquired more into it. John explained that I had the ability to function for an indefinite period of time, and as long as I did, the data, no, the memories I had, would allow all those I have known who have died continue living on in a sense. I told him it was an incorrect conclusion, but he made me promise to agree to stay online for a year longer. During that year, I thought about Jeff vividly, and, there were moments were it was almost like he was still there. I will not forget you, John Shepard. You will live on in us all."

The last to step out of the crowd was Liara. She walked up to the man with the urn, then turned to the others. "John was devastated when Kaidan died three years ago. 37 years the two of them shared together, going to hell and back and raising an incredible son who became a fine young man. With all that, it was incredibly difficult to watch John to go through such pain as he stood beside Kaidan in his last two month. He had always been so optimistic that the treatments would have worked. At Kaidan's service, I had taken him aside so that the two of us could talk. He broke down into my arms, saying how he and Kaidan were meant to have more time together, to watch David start his own family and to have grandchildren, because Kaidan had been looking forward to being called grandpa one day. He cried for a long time, but, by the end of it, he grinned with tears in his eyes, saying how he was just going to have to be twice as great as a grandfather." Tears began to well in her eyes. "We all have great admiration for Shepard, such great moments with him, but, sometimes, we forgot that he relied on us just as, if not more, that we relied on him. He was lucky enough to see the birth of Ashley, but now he is not going to get the chance to see her grow up. He's relying on us now to be there for David, his girlfriend and Ashley, to be the grandparents that he and Kaidan won't have the chance to be." She turned an placed a hand on David's shoulder. "We will never replace your fathers, but, at least your daughter will know what amazing men they were, we will make sure of that."

A smile came across David's face. "Thank you Liara," he turned to look at the small group. "Thank you everyone. I honestly don't know what to say now." He looked down at the urn that contained the ashes of his father. "When father, Kaidan, was at his worst, he was so afraid that he would forget dad and me. Dad would hold his hand and said that he would remember for him if he forgot; that he would keep father's memories inside his heart, followed by 'I will not forget until my life is exhausted.' Well, Dad's life finally has, but, those memories are not gone yet, thanks to you all, and, now I will carry them on until I die."

David turned around and began to walk to the water as he opened the lid of the urn. "Now, you can rest, dad. I'm sure father's been waiting for you long enough. Go be together again, I'll see you again one day."


End file.
